Erny

Not good that the Vet who did the X-rays didn't hold a copy/back-up, but is it possible Lavelle's have received them but not recorded them properly? Has it been explained to them that the x-rays are missing and asking them if there is more of a 'check' they could do to make sure they're not sitting somewhere they shouldn't be?

I'd be doing this too. Beforehand, ask the Vet's from where it was sent what time of the day was it sent and to which posting receptacle or post office it was delivered/sent via. I'd be more than peeved too and it would be nice if the Vet would at the very least do some leg-work to help track it down. Dobesrock - is a GA absolutely necessary for the xrays you had done?

Boarding your dog for the reasons of Separation Anxiety (is it SA, or is your dog ok when there is at least someone around, even if it is not you?) can go either way. It might help the dog learn to be independant of you. It might make no difference. OR It might sensitise your dog to you, making him more anxious that he might be separated from you again. What you're proposing is, in trainer's terms, "flooding". Flooding is a technique that can have excellent quick results in certain scenarios, but there is such a fine line to tread and it can go very wrong, quite easily. And so most trainers tend to avoid this technique, erring for the slower more reliable method of desensitisation. I think you would be best to consult a good Behaviourist to help you through with this. Yes, it is about building up time away from your dog, but there is more to it than that - there are also things that you might need to change in and around your home in terms of how and when you interact with your dog (directly and indirectly). Your dog's perception of and relationship status with you can effect or affect a dog's emotional state. Have a read of the thread currently running in "General Forum" . LINK . Some of the things written there might help you, even if it is "informatively" speaking.

I agree with you, Nekhbet. The general populous select particular parts of CM's manner and methods with dogs, and then prescribe them as a whole to what he is about. If they could recognise the foundation of what his attitude is towards dogs they would see that it is steeped in calmness and assertiveness, consistency and persistency, and taking a measure in what dogs need the most of in proper order (for a dog). That is not an attitude that can be branded only "CM" as it is one I amongst many other trainers had adopted before I (we) knew it of CM, but the great part of it was that CM put it up and out there via TV. FINALLY, someone (who made it to celebrity status) letting people know that the majority of behaviour problems come from how the PEOPLE are with their dogs, rather than the common and generally false recognition that it is about how the dogs are with their people. So in my books, kudos to CM for this. I don't know why people don't see that and instead continuously run him down for how he works with pretty serious dog problems (that were usually created by people, so he had a lot of undoing of the dog's 'people based beliefs' to undo to move forward in pretty quick time). Thanks Nekhbet :). Although I don't think SnT would have meant to exclude other trainers outside of the "positive only (so to speak)" realm.

Mandela's weight now increased from 36.2kg (11th January) to 37kg (4th February). :)

Specialist opinion regarding Mandela's mouth ulcers are that they are the result of hyper-sensitive gum tissue that is reacting to abrasion by the mere act of eating food. Good news is that they are not cancerous and won't impede on Mandela's life span in any way. Ulcer is still evident, but not as angry looking as was previous to the Active Manuka Honey treatment. There are times when it looks more pale and then there are times when the redness returns to it, but I'm hoping that with continued AMH treatment it will become less and less and then I can work to simply keep it in check. Dancinbcs - I have tried 3 places so far to get the Milk of Magnesia. 2 x pharmacies and 1 x supermarket. So far, no go. I've been asked at two of those places "do they even MAKE that anymore?". I'll surf around a bit on the net to see if I can find somewhere local(ish) that might stock it. Why on earth wouldn't they make it anymore? It's such an old, tried and tested true, remedy ??? I hope they haven't taken it from the market.

*Cough* ..... Doesn't have to be a "reward based trainer". Can just as well be a trainer who understands (and sometimes uses, when appropriate) all quadrants of learning but chooses the best for a pup, which is generally speaking, positive reinforcement and negative punishment, calibered to accord to the pup in question. Edited for grammar

They say participants are anonymous. Do they take names of the owners and their dogs?

Implement the "Triangle of Temptation" meal-time program. It's a "sticky" at the top of this training forum. This will teach your dog eye-contact/focus :).

Thanks Dancinbcs - I will give that a try. Once of the DNA results evidenced a stomach that was too acidic (which we are trying to bring into balance), so perhaps there is a connection there? (Rhetoric question to self.)

Karly101 - I went to our general Vet - Dr Bob Cavey (who is very good) and he took photos of the gum ulcers, as they are unusual. These photos were passed on to an animal dental specialist who apparently works at the Melbourne Zoo. First suggestion was to scale and clean the teeth in and around the gums. This was done. It made no difference to the ulcers. More photo's taken recently, including photo's of the inner cheek/lip and also photos of the inner sides of the molar teeth (the inner side is clear of ulcers). (Thank goodness Mandela is well trained at being handled - he was completely compliant and still whilst I held him for all these investigations and photos, alleviating the necessity for sedation :) . ) Waiting for opinion to come back from the Melbourne Zoo dental specialist. In the meantime, I just continue to try what I can try.

It's nice to be able to report something good, Perse - not something that has happened often. I am only scared that this "good" ends up being short-lived, but I can only hope that it's not. So far : With the Augustine Approved SF, we have (amongst other things) good stools and none of the horrible farting that was common-place previously. With the additional prescribed herbal supplements Mandela's now on, maybe that's the next step to getting his system running right. The AMH might just have been the extra that was needed to assist topically. Holding breath.

Latest update : Have still been at a bit of a loss regards the ulcers on Mandela's gums and they continue to persist. BUT there's been a few things I've been doing to address the other of Mandela's health concerns and one specific thing I've been doing to try to address the gum ulcer problem which might either be helping individually or as a whole. The specific 'treatment' I've been trialling is the application of Active Manuka Honey (the strong stuff) on the ulcers. This is something I've been doing for the past 3-4 days, at least 2 x daily but 3-4 x daily if I can. Last night I decided to use the AMH on a tooth-brush (combining the necessity to brush his teeth and the application of the honey). Today I was completely blown away by the improvement that I saw. The ulcer is still there, but not as inflamed as it has been and is a bit smaller in size. I am reserving any major celebration for when the gum ulcer completely goes away, and hoping like heck that's possible. Other things that could be contributing factors to the result I'm recognising is the addition of prescribed herbal supplements Mandela has been having administered for the past 2 weeks. The ultimate designed effect of these supplements is to encourage and allow his digestive system to absorb nutrients properly/more efficiently. What makes me begin to hesitantly believe these might actually be beginning to work is that the plaque on Mandela's teeth is subsiding big-time. Mandela has been on Plaque-off for at least 18 months now, with only very little and very limited success. But I have noticed over the past week (even before I began using the AMH on his gums) that the plaque that had been re-forming beyond my ability to control it, had suddenly receded dramatically! Rhetoric question to self : Is it possible that the additional prescribed herbal supplements are allowing his system to absorb the Plaque-off where before perhaps it wasn't? I am hopeful the answer to this is "yes" because that means his system would also most likely be able to more fully absorb all the other good stuff that is contained in Augustine Approved Super Food that he is being fed. With some more time I'm hoping this increased efficiency in absorption will help his system come to optimum balance and performance and that the other of his digestive issues will self-resolve. This is early days and I bide my time tending, watching and waiting. I'll update further when there are any particularly obvious signs of improvement or otherwise.

The DNA testing and analysis gives them what they need to know in terms of imbalances etc. so there's generally no need for them to see the dog as they work off the results of the DNA. I'll PM you his details.

Is it ONLY that her feet are turning inwards? Are the legs bowing out at all?

I've not heard of this disease either, so I'll be no help to you I'm afraid. I can only tell you that with my own dog, I have worked for the majority of his 4.5 year life trying to balance his system (as a whole - immune and digestive system inclusive) and am still working on it - with some improvement but not to say without the reappearance of symptoms. Not the same as yours *touch wood*. He has symptoms of furunculosis (not saying it is furunculosis, but the symptoms are similar) and has ear-margin vasculosis, both of which I believe go back to an immune system issue. At present I've returned to resorting to a DNA Hair test. Some of the results from this were quite amazing, as the person who runs these tests didn't know of some of the symptoms which affect my boy, mainly I guess because I didn't consider them to be a part and parcel of the mainstream issue. I'm in the process of administering the prescribed mainly naturopathic forumulas to him. We're nearly at the end of week 2 and the naturopath (?) suggests 4-6 weeks before we should expect to identify results. Consequently I am unable to report to you the success or failure or otherwise of what we're doing, but thought it might be worth mentioning now in the event you wanted to give this process a whirl. $120 for DNA test on the dog's hair. Obviously some $ on whatever is prescribed to suit the results. Re-testing is generally done at 6 weeks and is free. If you want the name of the person I went to, let me know. I completely agree with and applaude your Vet for advising no vaccinations. Your dog's immune system is compromised enough without enduring more assault. Regards your training club, get a letter from your Vet confirming the advice for no more vaccinations and present it to your Club together with expression of your willingness to sign a disclaimer against any disease your dog might contract as a result of attending the Club's training days. This might prove to be sufficient for them to make special dispensation allowing you to continue training without the vaccination cover they generally insist on. Good luck. Your Vet sounds quite switched on.

Yes, I think the essence of the terminology is becoming lost.

And yes, Trifecta, I tend to agree with the line of thinking you're travelling along in your post above. If the dog perceives an owner having a "weak link" (sorry for the wording, I'm tired, but I intend no offence nor judgement) some dogs have a sense of obligation to protect/govern. If the person it (in its mind) is supposed to protect is gone that can be akin to a bitch fretting after pups that have been forcibly removed/taken from the den. That the dog is confined and has no control or ability to be able to look to find that person, the initial anxiety can build to overwhelming anxiety and then you have a dog escalating to frenzy. I'm not saying this is the OP's case - I couldn't know as I don't know them. But this is why one of the early foundations in behavioural modification of this (and other) types centres around altering the perception of the dog and strengthening the leadership status in favour of the human.

I can only answer in my experience, rather than strictly in science, but I have found it easier to rehabilitate a dog to cope alone (when the lack of experience is the core issue) rather than one who has deep seated emotional attachments to a particular person or animal. That is not to say that the process has always been "easy", but rather, that I've found it easier. But of course, simply comparing one animal's behaviour against another is not a scientific basis to make such a statement, as the prior environmental experiences of each individual dog (some of which have been unknown) is most likely to have a bearing on the success rate and the "ease" of achieving that success. I have noticed more and more where the term "Separation Anxiety" has been interpreted by many as appropriate to their (or others') dogs, simply by thinking along the lines of "that dog is anxious when people - or animals - are separated from it - ergo, this behaviour must be SA". Because people generalised so much, the term was changed to "Separation Related Behaviour" when speaking in a general sense, but "SA" still kept popping up as the term to fit and so it has evolved by the masses to think this means any separation from any and/or all people or animals. I recognise "Separation Anxiety" as specific (as aforementioned) to A particular person or A particular animal and find the behaviour more manic, more deep seated than I do (generally, and in my experience speaking) as a dog that (simply .... although not always "simple", so I'm using that term in a 'per se' sense) isn't accustomed to being alone.

Once or twice.

Hi there Erny. That is very interesting and I'm going to look into it. No tests have been done aside from regular testing of bloods to ensure the meds are not having any adverse effects (Roo's urine since taking them is orange and there is some concern re. kidneys long term. ) It would probably be something I'd do, to at least rule it out. But as I've mentioned (hinted), I'd not be totally confident about any thyroid test done in Australia that came back negative because the testing here isn't as thorough as it is done in the USA. That your dog has taken so easily to relaxing provided there are people around (i.e. not necessarily you or for that matter, familiar people) increases my confidence that there is the real potential to help him and that the problem isn't so much "Separation Anxiety" in the technical sense (which is where the attachment is to a particular person or animal regardless of other company) but that it is more a case of not being able to cope with no company. Techniques for behavioural rehabilitation are similar in both instances, but I do believe the emotional state comes from a different level and potentially for different reasons. I agree with Staffyluv regards putting the focus on mental exercise as opposed to physical exercise. The latter is important for the fitness and well-being of the dog, especially physically speaking, but mental exercise is often over-looked. In amongst the various mental exercises you do (eg. tricks; obedience skills; etc), some other good exercises that can lend themselves towards creating a degree of independence are things such as "send-aways". IE Getting the dog to become confident about moving away from you, simultanously learning that the dog has some control over his own destiny. Agility sport is good for something like this. As is fly-ball. It is not the whole picture, as you (or some person) is still present throughout the exercise, but the dog is performing under your instruction and guidance but is making (well-guided) decisions for himself (and he's multi-tasking instead of being completely and only focused to the handler) and apart from the physical aspect, is also exercising his brain. I particularly like Agility for this because the agility course is often changing. Fly-ball course is static, although it can be a good start especially if your dog is into ball chasing, fetching etc. Believe it or not, these aforementioned sports (or similar) also generally have a good impact on the owner as well. Subtle (to us, but not necessarily to the dog) changes in attitude and body language emerge that the owners previously were unable to extinguish or disguise - simply because the owner/handler is also so mentally busy thinking about the course and negotiating the dog through it.

That's something that did cross my mind initially, TheLBD, but reading up further there can be a connection between separation anxiety and hypothyroidism.

Jellybush - could be a long shot (or not), but have you specifically tested your dog for hypothyroidism? If not, and if you want to enquire further, contact Dr Jean Dodds in the USA. Email me if you are unable to find her email address. Not many Vets out here give credence to the thyroid affecting behaviour in any or much extreme, especially if other typical clinical symptoms are absent. But I think it is at least worthwhile discussing with Dr Jean and then making your decision from there. Testing via Dr Jean Dodds in the USA (more thorough testing regime and more things taken into account when being analysed) isn't as expensive as you might think it could be. ETA: Are there any (other) medical tests that have been suggested and/or done via your behaviourist?

The "Walkydog Bike Trainer" seems to fit higher - i.e. at the stem of the seat and doesn't seem to have any flexibility to take away jarring that might affect the balance of the bike-rider. (Not suggesting it doesn't work or can't work.) The "Springer" seems to fit a bit lower down and does have the spring flexibility that I could imagine would lend a bit more leeway where the rider wouldn't notice every accidental tug. Would I be right in thinking the Springer to be the better of the two for the above reasons? I've had no experience with either so I'd be interested to know.

I'd be interested in the answer to this too.